


Urges and Thrills

by PenPanPen



Category: Durarara!!
Genre: Blood and Gore, Breaking and Entering, F/M, Masochism, Mentions of Suicide, Self-Harm, Stalking, Vague Depictions of Suicide
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-10-07
Updated: 2016-10-31
Packaged: 2018-08-20 00:28:38
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 3
Words: 14,413
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8229974
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/PenPanPen/pseuds/PenPanPen
Summary: DISCONTINUED   Chizuru was at some point a completely normal girl, well, normal if you didn't count that despicable urge that threatened to consume her whole. Controlling that urge is getting even harder to do now that she's drawn the attention of one of the most dangerous men to walk the streets of Ikebukuro. All she wanted to do was prevent a suicide, but now everything's going downhill at an uncontrollable speed.





	1. The Drop and the Bucket

**Author's Note:**

> This is my first DRRR!! fic, so if things are a bit wonky please forgive me. I usually write for OHSHC so it's definitely a massive shift.

Urban legends take root everywhere, they spring up like weeds in the cracks of concrete. One person sees something in an alleyway on their way home and by dawn the next day a rumor has spread throughout half the city. A shadow that grows in the light, ever taller than the being casting it. Sustained by whispers, a story told again and again and again until that shadow grows into an ugly and unruly caricature of the event that brought its existence about.

It’s no surprise to anyone that these shadows dissipate so quickly in the sun.

But, there are some…

 

* * *

 

 

She was reapplying her lipstick in the clouded mirror of the club’s bathroom, ignoring the trio of drug-addled women huddled around the sink next to her with a practiced ease. She waggled her eyebrows at her reflection. A satisfied smirk appeared on her beautiful face. She turned her head toward the trio, “The fuchsia's way better than that drab red, don’t you think?”

Two of them seemed unable to even hear her, let alone respond. The third, however, turned to her with wide eyes, “Y-you’re a monster.”

Her smirk became a grin, lighting up her mauve eyes, “Flattery will get you everywhere, dear.” she said simply. She tapped a finger to the paranoid woman’s chin and pressed a kiss to her cheek, staining the skin in Royalty #13.

The woman winced, whimpering.

The “monster” left the bathroom, only to be met in the hall by a solid wall of a man. He looked menacing to say the least, yet her glittering grin endured.

“He’s ready to see you.” he said gruffly, in a tone that brooked no argument.

Her pouted failed to reach her sparkling eyes, “What, no time for another dance?”

He grunted and jerked his chin, motioning toward the nondescript door at the other end of the hall. Another hulking man held the door open with a shoulder, waiting with an annoyed expression on his face.

She followed the first man. He led her up the stairs and through another hallway until he stopped at yet another door, allowing her to enter the room first. Once they were through he shut the door behind them and stood in front of it.

She surveyed the room with a neutral expression. A rough-looking man stood to either side of the leather sofa at the other end of the cramped room, the menacing man behind her, and an older man sitting at the couch- wreathed in cloying cigar smoke.

The aforementioned man on the sofa spoke first, “You know…” he took a long drag of his cigar and let the smoke spill out of his lips, despite the gravelly quality of his voice his tone was genial. “When I heard the name “Kazuo” I didn’t expect to see someone your size walk through that door, certainly not a girl.”

Kazuo shrugged, her smile returning, “Was the information I got for you satisfactory, Soga-kun?”

He let out a bark of laughter, it had been a long time since anyone had affixed “-kun” to his name, Especially his surname. “It was more than satisfactory, Kazuo.” he rid his cigar of its ash with a flick, though only about half of it made it into the ashtray on the coffee table before him. “Which is why it’s such a shame that I can’t pay you.”

She cocked her head, "I'm sorry, but I can't abide you breaking your part of the bargain."

He nodded, "I knew that, which is why I brought all of these friends of mine."

Her grin remained, "Ah, are you going to kill me?"

He nodded again, "It's really a shame, I regret having to deal with a woman so brutally, especially one as attractive as yourself." with a twitch of his fingers one of the men closest to him strode up to her. "Though at least this will make our job easier."

The man before her, drew a gun from his jacket pocket and aimed it at her face just between her eyes.

She pouted, "I've never been much of a fan of bullets, I'd always preferred strangulation." she mused aloud to the confusion of all the men in the room. "Oh well, since there's so many of you, I can do without the foreplay this time I suppose." All the while the loud thumping of the music beneath them played in the background, the heavy bass sending its vibrations up through her feet.

"What the fuck are you on about?" the gunman asked.

"Nothing." she grinned again, closing the distance between herself and the pistol. "Pull the trigger, honey." she got up on her tiptoes and- to the astonishment of every thug in the room- licked her way down the barrel meeting his eyes with her own, excitement and desire dancing in her stare.

"What the fuck?!" the gunman was taken aback and squeezed the trigger.

Blood and brain matter splattered the wall behind her. Her body collapsed to the floor, the back of her head a matted mess of hair, blood, bone and brain.

"What the fuck was that about?" the gunman asked, clearly shaken.

"Probably didn't think you were gonna do it, Toriyama."

"She was a weird one, that's for damned sure." Soga shook his head, "Well let's have this cleaned up." he shrugged, snuffing his cigar with a twist in his ashtray.

"Boss, she's twitching." the menacing man at the door announced, paused in the wiping of the blood spatter on his lapel.

"'S just her muscles." said the other thug. "Don't be such a pussy, Kaito."

But even as he was talking something odd was happening, her body was spasming and the blood that had been pooling on the floor seemed to retract and as they watched the shards of bone surrounding the exit wound on her head had begun to shake and reknit itself while the brain matter crept back into her opened skull. All the while the booming of the dance music played, the only sound still drowned out in their minds as they watched her body in horror.

"What the fuck?!" one man screamed in what might as well have been deafening silence. "What the actual fuck?!"

Kazuo began breathing again, shallowly and fast. Moaning as her skull sealed. She moved, drawing herself up on her knees. She smiled at the gunman before her, "What's wrong, honey? You look like you've seen a ghost."

"What the fuck?!" Soga screeched. "Shoot her! Fucking shoot her!" he ordered.

In the split second before the other two of his terrified men pulled their guns on her she grabbed Toriyama's wrist pulling herself up and pulling him in front of her to shield herself at the same time. The other two shot him twice in the chest each before they could stop themselves. Toriyama wretched and sputtered, gasping before going limp in her arms. She grabbed the pistol from his hand before he could drop it. She plugged the guard at the door between the eyes before he could react and then dropped Toriyama's dying body to the floor, levelling the pistol with the third thug at her right.

“Hmph.” her face twisted into a pout, “It seems the three of you weren’t as promising as I thought. Looks like this won’t be as satisfying as I thought.” she blinked sadly at the shaking man, shrugging, “Oh well.”

The man pulled his trigger and the bullet buried itself in her shoulder.

She briefly closed her eyes, letting out a pleased exhale, “Mmm, thanks for trying, honey.” she shot him in the head and he thudded against the wall, his body slowly slumping to the ground.

She turned on Soga, "Oh, Soga-kun, you couldn't have scrounged up a few more friends?" she strode over to him, the swaying of her hips and the sugar sweet smile on her face clashing with Toriyama's blood staining her clothes.

"What the fuck are you?" he croaked, shrinking away from her.

"Ah, I'm just a girl, right?" she held a thin finger to her mouth, tilting her head. She got up on her knees on the coffee table, knocking the ashtray to the floor where it clattered, eerily loud against the pulse of electronic music in the club full of dancing people below. She lifted the gun to aim at him.

"Please, don't kill me. I'll give you your money, I'll double it!" he cried.

"Mm, crying old guys are definitely a turn off." she sighed. "But, either way, I don't want your money. I'm in this line of work for the thrill of it, which is why it's so disappointing to listen to your sniveling. You know the gang members I ran into the other night managed to get me off once before I dispatched of them. Your big men couldn't even manage that." as she ranted the bullet in her shoulders slowly dislodged itself from her flesh, clattering to the floor like a pin dropping. The drops of her blood that had made their way to the floor began wriggling back to her as the hole in her shoulder came together and sealed shut. All that was left was a hole in the fabric and her smooth porcelain skin beneath.

"Oh God." he choked out, snot and tears streaming down his face. "I don't think he's listening, honey." she grinned, without another word she placed the barrel to his head and squeezed the trigger, effectively ending his blubbering.

She sighed, reaching into her purse for a wet wipe, she scrubbed the gun top to bottom to rid it of her DNA, humming all the while. She exited the room, careful not to disturb any pools of blood or the bodies at all, and made for the window at the opposite end of the hall from the stairs. She stepped out onto the fire exit and climbed toward the roof. When she made sure it was clear she hopped up. Fishing through her purse she retrieved a plastic bag and a change of clothes as well as a fixed-blade knife.

She unsheathed her knife, smirking at her own reflection on the bright surface, “Men these days just don’t care for their partner's pleasure, do they?" she said to no one in particular. She shrugged, "But that's alright, I'm an independent woman and I know how to handle myself." she brought the knife to her left wrist. Moaning when the blade bit into her skin and blood welled up only to spill in jagged lines down her hand to the floor. Eventually, it would return to her veins in reverse order.

 

* * *

 

 

Kuno Chizuru was lying in bed, still awake despite the lateness of the hour. The only light in the room was that of the illuminated screen of the phone in her hand. The mail she had opened read, “We should disappear together. That would mean something, right?”

Her fingers hovered over the buttons on her flip phone, hesitating.

She hadn’t known exactly what possessed her to join a forum for people considering taking their own lives. Before she could rethink her decision, however, she met Nakura. When they first started talking he seemed like a normal, mild guy, he came off very shy- like he felt he was a burden on those he talked to. Now that she’d gotten to know him better, she knew he was seriously depressed (not that that was much of a surprise, considering where they’d met). He’d told her that he’d first begun to think of suicide when he’d lost his job and his best friend all in one fell swoop. His friend had betrayed him, blaming one of his mistakes on Nakura- a mistake that cost their company millions of yen. The company fired Nakura and humiliated him besides. Now he was being evicted, and his strict father couldn’t care less, and he just couldn’t bear the pressure of trying any longer.

Chizuru was normally a very reserved girl, but hearing all of the misfortune that had befallen him had prompted her to tell him the myriad of things that she’d never talked with anyone about before. The gory details of her mother’s suicide, her ostracization from her family and peers, how each and every day had become an unmemorable blur of gray. How she could hardly motivate herself to leave her bed any longer.

Her heart was hammering against her rib cage as she replied, “Yes, Nakura.”

 

* * *

 

 

The next day was blanketed in a fog of immobility. She awoke, alone, shuffled through her flat, alone, ate breakfast, lunch, and dinner, alone, and watched tv, alone. Today was a copy of every other day she’d lived in the past few months. She drew no enjoyment from any of it, she never did anymore. She was just passing time. The multitude of books had sat on her shelves untouched and collecting dust, the meals she barely ate every day were simple and tasteless, and she hardly ever paid attention to whatever it was that was on tv she mainly used for background noise. The only thing that was different was that today she was planning on attending a double suicide.

As one of the victims, of course.

The place where she would meet Nakura was only about a fifteen minute walk from her apartment building.

All around her Ikebukuro was still going strong despite the fact that the sun had set a few hours ago. She tread through the energized crowds as a drowning woman treading water. It unsettled her even more to know that Nakura must be doing the same not too far away.

She’d made it to the building they’d agreed upon, and her stomach was alight with nerves. She made her way up all the way to the roof. Stepping out she realized she was so high up that there were only a few buildings nearby that towered over her.

She spied her companion standing a ways off, looking out over the roof’s edge. She could see him clearly in the neon lights of the city at night. His hair was black and he wore a coat trimmed with light-colored fur.

He glanced over his shoulder at her, “Kuno Chizuru?” his voice was as mild as can be, tinged with sadness.

“Nakura?” she closed the roof-access door behind her, approaching him timidly.

“Can I ask you something?” he returned his gaze to the pavement far beneath them.

“What is it?”

“What do you think happens… after you die?”

She thought about it for a while, still standing a few feet behind him, “I think, if you were a good person, you’ll probably go to some kind of heaven.”

He was quiet for some time before replying, "Is that so?" and his voice wasn't quite as mild as it was before, if anything there was a bit of annoyance in his tone. "Do you believe you'll go to heaven, then? That you can just end this life for a better one?" he turned to face her and he wore a sneer. "How hypocritical of you."

She was taken aback by the man before her, "W-what?" she asked dumbly.

He drew closer, shoving his hands in his pockets, leaning over a bit to see her eye-to-eye, "Why do you deserve a better life? All of your problems are your own fault, after all."

She recoiled.

"As you whined on and on about how sad and lonely your life was did you not once think that maybe if you just didn't spend all your time pitying yourself you might be better off? No one forced you into isolation." his sneer became a smirk as he made his point. "The fact is you're just a coward, rather than trying to turn your life into one worth living you want to be handed a better life just like that."

She gave him a hollow, hurt stare, “Nakura… you’re not suicidal…?”

He straightened, grinning, “ _Ding ding ding!_ ” he sang, throwing his hands up in the air. “We have a winner!”

“But… I don’t understand…” she muttered in a small voice.

“Ah, are you upset?” he got in her face again. “Why should it matter? You were going to kill yourself tonight anyways.”

She looked away from him, “About that… I didn’t come here to commit suicide. I came to convince Nakura not to.” she returned her gaze to him.

His smug smile faltered, before returning to an even wider grin than before, "What was that?"

"But now I understand that Nakura doesn't even exist." she sighed, ignoring his excited expression. "It is a bit disappointing, but I feel a sort of relief as well."

He took a step back from her, sizing her up, "You came to stop Nakura?"

"Wait, could it be that…you're Orihara Izaya?" she tapped a finger to her chin, realizing that the fur coat should have been a dead giveaway.

His grin remained, and he clapped, "Chi-chan, I must commend you, so far you've managed to do two unexpected things."

She held up a hand, "I don't mean to seem rude, but I must be going. Don't take this the wrong way but I have no desire to become associated with the likes of you."

His eyes widened merely for a moment, "How cruel of you to say, your attitude needs readjustment."

She simply began to walk away from him.

"Hey! Hold on!" he trailed her. "Don't you have any manners?"

She turned up her nose, "I don't like being lectured about manners by a man who tells lies."

"You didn't do the exact same thing?" he was still just a step behind her.

She stopped and he nearly crashed into her, "I was trying to do the right thing." she defended herself.

On the stairs he looked down on her, "How boring. Tell me, why did you want to save Nakura in the first place?"

She resumed her descent on the stairs, "Why did you lure a "suicidal" girl here with your fake sob story?" she returned curtly.

He let out a bark of laughter, "Are you mad at me, then?"

"I don't know you, I can't be mad at you." she flattened the irritation in her voice. Mostly she just did not want him following her home. Just having him near her filled her gut with dread, and his insistent ranting and rambling was really starting to get on her nerves. At the bottom of the stairwell she was at her breaking point, she made to elbow him in the stomach.

He caught her elbow, refusing to release her, "You're easy to anger, Chi-chan." she heard a swish and a clink behind her and saw a switchblade near her cheek from the corner of her eye. "I don't hurt women, as long as they play nice."

She had a feeling this was some kind of test, to see how she would react. But it was hard to focus on that train of thought. That urge, the most shameful thing that had followed her throughout most of her life clouded her mind.

Without another moment of hesitation she pressed her cheek to the cool edge, she gasped as it scratched her skin and had to stop herself from swooning, "H-harder." she whimpered, feeling the warm creep of blood escape from the small scratch. Even as the plea left her mouth she came to her senses, reeling from her disgusting urge, she jerked away from the knife as though she had burned herself (although burning had a similar effect on her). Her face was crimson and she wheeled around, seeing something no one else in all of Ikebukuro could ever claim to have seen for themselves.

Orihara Izaya's brow knitted in confusion.

She didn't even have time to register that particular anomaly before she ran in the opposite direction as fast as her legs could carry her.

 

* * *

 

 

"What was that all about?! I need to know! I need to know! _I need to know!_ This is all so exciting!" Izaya typed out as he skipped into his apartment later that night. His meetings with suicidal people had started to become boring for him but this time it had led to something that he hadn't been able to stop thinking about the whole way home. He had Chizuru's contact information obviously but so far she had yet to respond to any of his messages.

He began listing all of the interesting things that had come of this meeting:

1\. Kuno Chizuru was not suicidal, despite all of the information she'd given him under his guise of Nakura being true. In fact, she had wanted to save "Nakura" from committing suicide.

2\. She seemed to want nothing to do with him, but continued to entice his curiosity with her piss poor attitude.

3\. She had willingly cut herself with his switchblade, and the reaction she had! It was beyond masochistic! It was entirely immoral and he needed answers!

 

* * *

 

 

Chizuru lay in bed, the covers over her head, listening to her phone vibrate again and again on her nightstand.

If she ignored him, he'd go away, right?

She flinched when her phone went off again.

What the hell had she been thinking?! Orihara Izaya was one of the most dangerous men in all of Ikebukuro! He was manipulative and had honed his skill of using others to an art. And he was rumored to have given Heiwajima Shizuo more than a few injuries- which was nerve-wracking on its own, Chizuru had once seen the "mysterious bartender" chuck a vending machine more than two storeys into the air! Orihara was a man you didn't want to get on the bad side of, or good side of, or know at all. Chizuru especially had no business drawing the attention of info brokers.

She had been trying to do a good deed, for fuck's sake! And this was how the universe was repaying her! Life was precious, human life especially, had she been so wrong to try to preserve it?

_"Oh poor, sweet Nakura, you nonexistent son of a bitch!"_ she thought.

He’d drawn her in, coaxed her insecurities out of her, made her feel comfortable… And where had that gotten her?! She never had any intention to follow through with the suicide, something like that was the last thing she’d ever consider. Even when she’d joined the forum it had really only been out of curiosity. And she’d never just let someone innocent person die if there was anything she could do to stop it…

Ugh, just thinking about how she’d been played upset her all over again!

And that damn phone wasn’t helping!

Her skinny arm shot out of her blanket, nabbing her phone and holding down the button at the top to turn it off before letting it clunk back to the nightstand. Thankfully dark and blessedly silent.

She calmed down, maybe she could get lucky and write this all off as a nightmare. It was a regrettable experience, yes, but eventually she would be under the radar yet again.

With that thought in mind, she slipped into a deep, dreamless sleep.

 

* * *

 

 

"Chi-chan~ Chi-chan~!" someone was shaking her shoulder, chanting her name softly.

She opened her eyes groggily, blinking to bring that someone into better focus.

There was a man standing before her, insistently shaking her shoulder with a pleased smile on his face.

Why was he in her bedroom?

Realization dawned on her.

Why was _Orihara_ in her bedroom?!

She kicked herself backward, wrenching her shoulder from his hand.

"Ne, Chi-chan, you're so lively when you wake up!" his smile was slightly crooked as he surveyed her with unbridled interest.

"What the hell are you doing here?!" she spat, though her words were crowding together and came out in a higher octave than she would have liked.

He tilted his head, "Ah, you didn't answer any of my calls or messages, I was beginning to get worried." his gaze shifted to his left, he plucked her phone from the nightstand. "Oh, is this your phone? Did you turn it off? What if an emergency were to occur?" his eyes rested on her again and his easy smile became a grin. "I hate to think of what would happen if someone were to break in." With every word his grin became more menacing.

She ran over her options in her head, she wasn't exactly defenseless but there was no way she could overpower him. Would he pursue her if she ran? Could she make it to her neighbor's door before he could catch her?

She heard the chiming of her phone turning on, and her arm shot forward, making to yank her cell from his hand.

He was quicker, holding it just out of reach while his free hand wrapped around her wrist.

"Did you think I was going to go through your phone?" his unsettling grin doing wonders for her nerves. "Your reaction only makes me want to go through it more, but where would be the fun in that?"

She attempted to free her wrist, but he only tightened his grip. Not enough to hurt, thank God, she didn't want a repeat of last night.

"In case you're wondering, I'd much rather get the answers to my questions from you personally." he leaned in to her eye level, despite being uncomfortably close to begin with. "You see, I'm very curious in nature, so when something piques my interest I just can't seem to help myself. I need to know what's up." his very-nearly garnet eyes bright with excitement. "I admit it'll be a challenge, it's clear you don't trust me. I don't blame you, if I were you I wouldn't trust me either! But the challenge is what makes it interesting!"

"So, if you'd like your phone back all you'll have to do is ask nicely, Chi-chan~" he waved the thing before her.

Was he serious?

"May I please have my phone back?" she asked, uncertain, heart still hammering at a hundred miles a minute. But as promised he handed it over to her without a second thought. She was still eyeing him skeptically.

"How do you know I won't call the police?" she narrowed her eyes at him, thumb of her free hand hovering over the screen of her phone.

He tilted his head and shrugged, "I don't." he admitted, still smiling. "But, if this sudden hesitation is any indication, you're most likely bluffing."

_"Damn him."_ she glared at him. The malice in her eyes only increasing as he leaned toward her again.

"Go ahead, Chi-chan~ You've been full of surprises so far." he dared her, the amusement dancing in his eyes not at all dampened by her glare, but for once his smile fell.

She was weighing the options in her head again. She bit her lip, before letting her phone fall to her bed.

His grin returned, "Good, good." he nodded, ruffling her hair. "Though now you've got me curious as to why you don't want to call the cops. Just another thing I'll need an answer to."

She pushed his hand away from her head and he drew back, though their eyes never left the other.

"Well, certainly all of this glaring has made you hungry, in fact I've worked up an appetite myself. So, Chi-chan, what's for breakfast?" Orihara held his hands to his hips, rocking on his heels.

She felt like the vein over her temple was going to explode, "And why would I make you breakfast?"

"Mm, you're not a very good host, are you?" he pouted.

"You're not a very good guest, in fact, you're an intruder." she pointed out, eyes still attempting to bore holes through him.

He snickered, turning his back to her and heading toward the door, "Still, I think at this point you should be doing just about anything I ask, actually."

"Why's that, Orihara?" despite herself, she was getting out of bed, following him.

He glanced back at her over his shoulder, "Ah, by the way, does the name "Kazuo" ring any bells for you?"

She stopped in her tracks, eyes wide and blood thundering in her ears, racing cold through her veins.

His smile was smug, she wanted to slap it right off of his face.

"Come on, Chi-chan~ What should we have for breakfast? I'm not a fan of sweets. Chi-chan, do you have any eggs?" he asked as he skipped into her living room, his tone of voice doing a complete one-eighty.

She spared a glance at her front door, unlocked, beside it a fur-lined coat hung on her coat rack and an unfamiliar pair of shoes had been placed beside the entryway.

He'd just come in through the front door.

_"Maybe I should invest in electronic locks?"_ she thought, watching as Orihara made himself comfortable at her dining room table.

"I've decided on omelets." he said simply, resting his head in a hand.

She grumbled, but went into her kitchen anyway, readying the ingredients.

_"For now, I'll placate him. But I'll have to find some way of getting rid of him soon."_ she thought as she broke the eggs a little more forcefully than usual.

But even as she knew his involvement in her life was enough to make her stomach knot up, that niggling urge in the back of her head was whispering, _"He's dangerous. And danger is just what I want."_ She shook her head of the thought.

"Say, Chi-chan?" the home invader spoke up as he observed her making omelets.

"What?" she asked gruffly, not bothering to turn around.

"When I first went looking into you, when you knew me as Nakura, I never discovered what it was you did for a living." he was relaxing in one of her dining chairs, one arm on the back of the chair, legs crossed, one foot swinging, like he was casually visiting a friend rather than menacing someone like her. "At first, it didn't really spark my interest. But, now that I see what a nice place you have, it makes me wonder what kind of job you have."

She grit her teeth.

"Could it be you're dad is paying for a place this nice? He must love you a lot to foot the bill for a place this high-end. Ah, wait, that's right, you said you and your father aren't on speaking terms."

She faced him, her glare losing a bit of its edge as she held a spatula and frying pan. _"Screw it."_ she thought. The urge to do dangerous things winning out over common sense. "You said you know about Kazuo so I'm sure you already know by now, Orihara." she scowled at him. "I'm an information broker."

He blinked once, twice. And suddenly he was laughing, holding his sides, the kind of laughter she had always imagined an evil mastermind having. "I knew it! I knew it! _I knew it!_ " he managed as he tried to catch his breath.

She turned back to the stove, redirecting her glare at the eggs in the skillet.

 

* * *

 

 

After she'd made breakfast, he'd left- mercifully enough. She watched out her window as he skipped down the sidewalk away from her apartment building. He paused, momentarily, catching sight of her in the window, and waved to her. She closed the curtains, fuming.

"Call me, Izaya, by the way." read the message on her phone.

She didn't bother replying, but she did make a call.

The tone rang and rang and rang, before it finally went to voicemail. Without any form of preamble she stated her message, "There's trouble. I don't know what kind of danger I could be in just yet. But someone's caught on to me. His name's Orihara Izaya, I'm sure you know more about him than me. Contact me when you can."

She hung up, taking a few calming breaths.

 

* * *

 

 

A ways off there was the sound of a car alarm going off followed by the sound of crunching and twisting metal, as though someone had silenced the noise very violently. For a few minutes there was relative silence and then a whiny could be heard, crying high and loud and quickly disappearing into the night, as though someone were riding a horse. As the moon was high in the sky, a figure stood atop a roof. The noises of Ikebukuro at night did not seem to faze them, instead they were focused on a lit-up window of the apartment building across from them. He held up binoculars to get a better look.

A woman in her early twenties, with hair the color of caramel and fair, perfect skin, changed into a nightgown before bed. He watched her, licking his lips. He could make out the swell of her big breasts as the silk of the gown slipped over her body, hugging her hips.

"The window's still open you naughty girl." he rasped, heart pounding. But it didn't surprise him, the girl had seemed very distracted today when he'd watched her go out for groceries. Distracted enough to bump into not one, but two other customers at the store.

"What's got you so spaced out today, baby?" he muttered to himself. "Could it be you've caught on to me? No, no, that's not possible just yet." the little laugh he'd let out was a bit breathless. "Maybe it's that man you met last night? The one who came to see you this morning? I must admit, I'm a little jealous thinking of him getting to see your beautiful face. Did you let him kiss your precious lips? Did you let him touch your soft skin? I'm not mad at you, it's not your fault. You don't know you belong to me yet, dearest. But I'll definitely have to punish you later. Yesss." he hissed. "And, I'll punish you as much as you want, we both know how much you want that." his hand went down to the front of his pants, rubbing at the bulge there. She reached for the light beside her bed on all fours, giving him a perfect view of her ass just before the light went out.

"Don't worry, that fur coat bastard is just another speed bump for us, Chizuru." his words were swallowed up by the night as he lowered his binoculars. "I'll show you, no one will ever love you as good as I do."

 

* * *

 

 

There is a place where urban legends thrive even in the light of day. A place where these monsters of legend and humans meet and mingle freely. A place where shadows grow and multiply, rooted to the feet of someone you might just pass on the street. And these shadows tangle like a puppet’s strings. Waiting for someone to cut them free, before someone picks them apart completely…


	2. Blind Alley

Izaya was nearing his apartment when the town car pulled up to him, curious, he peered inside.

Haruya Shiki, executive of the Awakusu-kai did not return his look of interest. Instead he gave him a rather expectant stare, nodding his head curtly for the informant to get in the car.

"Shiki-san~!" he smiled as he sat down. "To what do I owe the honor?"

As the car pulled away from the curb the older man began to explain, "The Awakusu-kai are looking forward to an alliance with the Iwayama Group, and an opportunity to solidify that alliance seems to have opened up."

Izaya listened intently, despite already knowing what this was most likely about.

"The daughter of one of their top executives was abducted a few days ago." he pulled a picture of the woman from his jacket pocket and handed it to Izaya. "She'd been in Ikebukuro visiting a friend at the time she went missing."

Fujiko Iitaka was a beautiful woman no doubt, youthful with fair skin and light brown hair. In the picture she smiled up at the camera, happy as can be.

"This morning she was found dead, her body was left in a car park. Some real twisted shit happened to her before she died." he paused, huffing in disgust, "Anyway, the surveillance in the car park had been tampered with, but a camera in a shop close by was able to catch a glimpse of a man driving into the lot around the time her body might've been dumped. His license plate was a bust, stolen vehicle, but..." he handed the informant a second photo.

The shot was blurry and some of the man's face was indistinct, but it might just be enough to work off of, "So the Awakusu-kai wants to find this man for the Iwayama Group?" Izaya nodded.

"If you can figure anything out about this guy, you'll be rewarded handsomely."

Izaya thought for a while, "I believe I can do you one better. Give me enough time and I could bring this man to you- whoever he is."

Shiki gave the younger man a sidelong glance, but agreed to this all the same.

The car came back around to where it had picked Izaya off and dropped him off.

Izaya said his goodbyes to Shiki and continued toward his apartment, pulling the photo of the woman out of his pocket. _"I don't usually buy in to coincidence..."_ he thought with a satisfied smirk, returning the photo to his jacket. _"...but in this instance, fate is even more unbelievable."_ he couldn't suppress the giggle that accompanied his growing grin. 

 

* * *

 

-Senbazuru has entered the chatroom-

Kanra: Ah~ She finally joins us~

Setton: A new person? Hello, Senbazuru!

Senbazuru: Hello, Setton.

Kanra: You're going by Senbazuru? Good choice. Do you know the legend of senbazuru, Setton?

Setton: I don't know it.

Kanra: Anyone who folds 1000 paper cranes will be granted a wish by God~

[P.M. Mode]

Kanra: So, what is your wish, Chi-chan~?

Senbazuru: I wish that I'd never met Orihara Izaya.

Kanra: How cruel of you! Chi-chan!

[End of P.M. Mode]

Kanra: Anyway~ I invited Senbazuru, I met her the other day on a rooftop~ Pretty romantic, don't you think~?

Setton: You two met in such a weird place...

Senbazuru: Shut up, Kanra.

Kanra: Waah~ Don't be so mean, Zuru~!

Kanra: Ah~ Speaking of legends, have you heard about the Undead Killer?

Setton: Sounds scary...

Kanra: It is~! There have been mysterious deaths occurring all over Tokyo!

Kanra: There's no evidence left at any of the scenes!

Kanra: But there was a woman that witnessed one such scene!

Kanra: She said the killer was shot during the incident but the wound just closed up!

Senbazuru: What?

Senbazuru: Stop kidding around, Kanra.

Setton: Yeah, that's definitely out there.

Kanra: You don't believe me?

Kanra: I'm hurt.

Setton: Ah, I'm going out now. Nice meeting you, Senbazuru. Goodbye!

Senbazuru: Goodbye!

Kanra: Bye byeeee~

-Setton has left the chatroom-

[P.M. Mode]

Kanra: So, do you know anything about the supposed Undead Killer, Chi-chan~?

Senbazuru: I hadn't heard of it until now.

Kanra: Is that so~? You're not a very good informant, Chi-chan! How very disappointing~!

Senbazuru: I'll gladly continue being mediocre then.

Kanra: You're so much more bold on the net, Chi-chan~! Perhaps now you can tell me more about why you acted the way you did when I pulled out my knife~?

Senbazuru: I don't know what you're talking about, Kanra-chan.

[End of P.M. Mode]

-Senbazuru has left the chatroom-

Kanra: You left without saying goodbye!!!

Kanra: Cruel Zuru-chan!

-Kanra has left the chatroom-

Chizuru stared down at her phone, a frown darkening the fair features of her face. She'd eventually joined that chatroom at Orihara's insistence- by insistence she meant the same text being sent to her phone over and over until she finally caved just to shut him up.

It had been nearly a week since Orihara Izaya had broken into her apartment, since then she'd seen him only one other time when he swore he was "just in the neighborhood". Explaining his sudden appearance as though he were dropping in on an old friend with the intent of catching up. Chizuru had steered the conversation away from anything too endangering (i.e. anything about her personally) as he conned her into making him lunch.

To be honest, however, in some ways it was interesting to speak with an informant. She didn't need money right now, she wouldn't for a while with the way she was living, so she didn't mind giving away a few bits of information here and there. Though, there was precious little Izaya didn't know already. And she knew he knew that she was trying to distract him with more in-depth information on Ikebukuro.

And it was a bit thrilling when he would further her understanding about this or that, even if it was only minutely.

 

* * *

 

When Chizuru was young her grandfather had told her she had "an eye and an ear for everything". Of course, he'd never meant this as a good thing and the first time he'd said it was after she'd told her grandmother about her grandfather's frequent trips to the liquor store when he'd claimed he was taking Chizuru for a walk.

Still, his observation of her was true. At home she knew everything about everyone, she knew who took her neighbor boy's rhino beetle, she knew who was smoking behind the school, she knew which teacher was having an affair with a student, she even knew a good bit about her father's odd work.

By the time she'd learned about many of these things however, she'd already learned to keep some things to herself from the back of her grandfather's hand. And so few of these facts ever saw the light of day, unless they proved useful either to her wellbeing or her wallet later on.

Somehow, other people's secrets made her feel better about her own. Yes, she had many secrets that she kept for many reasons but it wasn't as if anyone could tell what she was hiding, and even if someone did find out, she would know, and she would destroy them before they had the chance to destroy her. She held herself above others for quite some time because she knew better than they did. And because she knew better, she was better. For that reason alone many of her classmates ostracized her. This made it easier to listen to them without them even realizing she was there.

In her first year of high school, she met a girl named Ogawa Mimi, a girl who had few friends due to the fact that she was bitter and a self-proclaimed "bitch".

Mimi had approached her after she noticed Chizuru discreetly eavesdropping on an intense phone conversation between Mimi and her senior "boyfriend". Mimi had surprised Chizuru by revealing that she knew Chizuru knew just about all there was for her to know about their classmates. She knew Chizuru eavesdropped on everything. On many occasions she'd witnessed Chizuru with a book in her hand, despite the fact that she hadn't turned a page in hours, instead she was intently focused on the conversations of those around her.

"Don't bullshit me, I know how you are." Mimi had said. "I know you heard me on the phone with Takumi!"

"I wasn't listening in on anything, Ogawa-san, I promise." Chizuru gave the girl a mild smile as if to assure her.

"Whatever! Just tell me what you know about Takumi's other girl!" The two could not look more different. Mimi wore her skirt rolled up and kept her jacket unbuttoned, the tips of her hair were still lightened from a long-ago dye job and she wore makeup despite their school's policy against it. Chizuru was more proper, applying to the dress code perfectly, knee-length skirt, buttoned up jacket and tied scarf, socks of the suitable length. She wore her long, meticulously curled hair down or on hot days in a simple ponytail, and donned square-rimmed glasses.

Chizuru had sat down her book, folding her hands over on the desk surface, "Why do you think he has another girl?" she asked, aware that this could be some form of entrapment, but also aware that it was unlikely that a passing-by-the-skin-of-her-teeth girl like Mimi was not smart enough for that sort of ploy.

"What are you talking about? Of course there's another girl! When guys want to break up there's always another girl!" Mimi slammed a palm down on Chizuru's desk to accentuate her point.

_"It's not because you're overbearing and have loose morals?"_ she thought.

Chizuru nodded, "Ah, yes, there is another girl, so I suppose you're correct." she waved a hand, gesturing with her head toward the track that was visible through her window. "Do you know Sato Ayame of Class 1-A? She's on the track team. I once saw her and your Takumi making out behind one of the air conditioning units on the roof." she said with a blunt tone, speaking matter-of-factly.

"That slut!" Mimi raged. "I'll fucking show her!"

Chizuru wondered for a moment if Mimi would retaliate against Takumi as well, but she knew she wouldn't. Mimi was, after all, a weak woman who believed that women were the root of all problems, especially women who dared to be conventionally attractive.

The next day, thumbtacks were found in Ayame's track shoes, after Ayame had put one of them on, of course. Mimi couldn't have timed it better, as an important track competition was won by a separate team just two days later. Though, if Ayame had been able to run she would have won flat out, judging by her averages.

Mimi began hanging around Chizuru after that. Though the quiet girl didn't quite appreciate the burdensome company after first she grew to tolerate it. Mimi had encouraged her to get a bolder haircut, to wear sexier clothes, to go out after school all the while using Chizuru's knack for eavesdropping to play matchmaker for other students- for a fee of course. It was fun for a while and it gave Chizuru something to do and extra cash was always appreciated. It was obvious to Chizuru that Mimi used her to make herself feel less lonely, to make herself feel better. It was evident in the way she said, "That just doesn't suit you." or "Do you really want another piece of cake?" or "Of course you're free Friday night." But it didn't hurt Chizuru one bit. In fact, it reminded her of how she would never have to worry over trivial matters like Mimi did.

In their senior year Mimi had fallen head over heels for an older man named Takashi. He was a third-year in college but he had met her by chance when he'd hailed a cab for an intoxicated Mimi after a party. Mimi had begged Chizuru to come with her to all of the parties he attended after that. And so Chizuru was dumped on Takashi's clingy cousin, Minato, while she and Takashi went off to do undoubtedly immoral deeds. Party after party, Minato would try to get her drunk and would hit on her nonstop despite the faultless ice queen attitude she exuded. Finally, exasperated one night after Minato had blatantly tried to stick his hand down her pants after getting wasted himself, Chizuru refused to accompany Mimi to the next one. She'd told Mimi she wasn't going to let herself be defiled so the brash girl could have her own fun somewhere else.

And Mimi had said, "Why does it matter if he gropes you? If you didn't act like your knees were fused together maybe you'd see what all the fun was about."

Chizuru smiled, she was growing tired of Mimi anyhow.

A week before school was out Chizuru went to Takashi's dorm room to "see what all the fun was about". Telling Mimi the next day, "Mm, I don't see what you see in that Takashi boy, he didn't get me off even once."

Chizuru was smiling even as Mimi kneed her in the gut, if anything it felt good. Of course, it felt good, damn that deplorable urge. Thankfully, Mimi confused her ecstatic whimper for a mewl of pain.

Mimi was screaming at her through her tears, "Are you fucking proud of yourself?! Fucking your best friend's boyfriend?! Wait, that's right, you're too good for friends, aren't you?! You're just a conceited fucking slut!" she kicked Chizuru in the shin.

Chizuru drew in a haggard breath.

"You think you're so fucking smart! You're fucking worthless! You have no fucking friends! Your family fucking hates you! And your mother fucking killed herself! I bet it was to get the fuck away from you!" she punched her in the face, leaving a dark mark of rapid bruising.

That was all it took, Chizuru felt her body being overcome by warmth, she cried out, fully overtaken by that nasty thrill of pleasure brought by pain.

"What the fuck is your problem?!"

"Thank you, Mimi." Chizuru smiled up at Mimi, eyes shining.

"Are you fucking enjoying this?! You're fucking sick!" Mimi recoiled, shoving Chizuru to the ground and stomping off without another word.

Later that night, Chizuru was disgusted with herself, not for what she'd done to Mimi, nor because of the terrible but mostly true things Mimi had said about her, but for allowing herself to be consumed by the thrill of pain.

She went to graduation with a shiner. Mimi did not talk to her.

No, Mimi did her one better. She blabbed about Chizuru's vile masochism to Minato.

And she gave him her address and number.

 

* * *

 

Chizuru shook the memory from her head, shivering. There was a rattling sound coming from her front door. She jumped, watching the doorknob shake.

Of course, Orihara Izaya was her most current problem. He strode through the door, locking it behind him. She could decide whether she should be impressed by his audacity or horrified by how quickly he'd picked her lock.

He looked up at her, "Chi-chan, you changed your locks. A smart move, but maybe you should have went for something pick-proof?" he said with a grin, reaching into his coat pocket to give her a glimpse of his lock picking kit with a look that said, "How else did you think I was getting in?"

"Orihara, what'll it be today? Have you come for dinner or just general pestering?" she snarked, returning her gaze to her phone.

"Izaya." he corrected her as he rounded her couch, tugging at her wrist, "Neither, come on, we're going out. We have business to discuss!"

She yanked her wrist out of his grasp, "No, we don't." she huffed. "Besides, we wouldn't need to go out for that purpose anyway."

He leaned forward, balancing on his heels, "What if I treat you to dinner~?"

She narrowed her eyes at him, "I don't need your charity."

He smiled, "No, no~ Of course not~!" he held his hands to his hips. "But this business must be conducted elsewhere, so get up." he was using that hardened tone of his to bully her.

She sighed, giving him a suitable berth as she got up from her couch to fetch her purse and shoes.

 

* * *

 

"Orihara we've been wandering for near an hour, what the hell is this business you wanted to discuss?" she glowered at him, following him with folded arms.

"Well, it's a very important business deal, one that won't make sense if I can't find a certain someone beforehand." he glanced at her over his shoulder, his eyes alight with the usual mischief. "And please, call me Izaya."

"Could you be more vague?"

"Mhm."

As they continued their wandering, he asked her something, "Do you really believe in a heaven?"

She glanced up at him, and his smile was a little mocking, "Yes."

"You know there's nothing that disturbs me more than casual believers." he sneered.

"I'm not seeking your approval." she shrugged, shoving her hands in her pockets as they rounded a corner.

"Still, doesn't it seem like a disservice to those who didn't want to die but have anyway?"

"Eh, no one really wants to die, anyway. I'm sure that even those who commit suicide are really just wishing for a better life." she tilted her head. "Which is why it's so sad."

A beat of silence passed between them and she added, "Besides, it doesn't matter what I believe."

"Why do you say that?" the look of excitement dawned in his eyes again, she was actually going to tell him something!

"Even if there is a heaven, I'm definitely not going there when I die."

He stopped, grabbing hold of her upper arm so she would stop, too. His delighted gaze meeting her expressionless one, he was about to ask for her to clarify when some kind of roar erupted from the other side of the street.

"IIIIIIZAAAAAAYAAAAA!!!!"

Chizuru whipped around, fear sinking into her from the sheer ferocity of the roar.

Across the street stood a tall, blonde man in shades and the uniform of a bartender.

_"Why is Heiwajima-san yelling for him?"_ she looked to Ikebukuro's strongest man with shock.

"Ah, there's that brute. Time to go, Chi-chan~!"

Before she could even turn back to Izaya, two things happened. First, Heiwajima Shizuo pulled a metal bench that had been anchored in concrete up with one hand and begun spinning with it in his hand like he was about to fling it, and second, Izaya scooped her up unceremoniously in his arms and dashed off at a speed she didn't think he'd be capable of. Which was especially impressive considering her added weight.

"How many time's do I have to tell you to _stay out of Ikebukuro!!"_ she could hear Shizuo shouting from his place behind them.

Despite how much she detested the man carrying her, she wrapped an arm around his neck, peering back at the enraged blonde just in time to see him let go of the bench. It flew far and high, only to land a few feet behind them, completely demolishing the patch of sidewalk Izaya had just sprinted over.

Her eyes widened at the tremendous display of strength. Even that terrible urge in her mind was quiet at that time.

Upon seeing that he'd missed, the bartender took off after them.

"He was the one you were seeking out?!" she shouted, but even as her mind was trying to find the reason in appearing before a ridiculously powerful enemy, her heart was hammering in her chest. Adrenaline began to course through her veins making her light headed and hyper alert all at once. Ultimately her brain stopped trying to rationalize the info broker's actions and that urge made itself present once more, _"This is dangerous! This is all so very dangerous!"_ she thought before she could rein herself in.

Shizuo never got close enough to grab them, and eventually he did stop in confusion, most likely because that damned flea was carrying someone. And he wasn't sure whether or not they deserved to die, too.

Izaya dipped into an alleyway, before dipping into another, despite the fact that Shizuo had stopped. He dashed up a fire escape, finally setting her down when he reached the roof.

He wasn't even out of breath.

Chizuru's knees nearly gave out on her as she was released, she rested her hands against them, bending double to catch her breath even though she hadn't been the one running.

"That was- That was-" she stammered.

"Terrifying~? Unsafe~? Perilous~?" Izaya poked at her when she didn't continue, bending at the waist to see her face. While it was clear he didn't consider what just happened as any of those things, he wanted to pin down her reaction.

To his delight, she was grinning. Actually grinning! And her eyes seemed to shine with exhilaration.

"Invigorating!" she supplied, straightening up. She tossed her head back and laughed, breathily. Arms crossing over her stomach. She knew that just now she was out of control. She had given in to that urge just a little. Not that she felt physical pleasure from being in dangerous situations. But damn did it feel good to be just that close to harm.

When she'd gotten over her laughing fit she looked at the dark-haired man before her with interest in her wide eyes. Purple eyes that shone with excitement.

"What was this business you wanted to talk about?" she asked finally in an airy voice.

 

* * *

 

"Izaya! Long time no seeing you!" the man outside a shop called "Russia Sushi" greeted the informant as they approached. "Risky being in Ikebukuro."

Chizuru had seen the man before, he was hard to miss. He towered over everyone, and despite being dressed in the uniform of an unassuming sushi chef he still looked like he could choke a bull out. He had a reputation for being just as strong as he appeared as well. Though Chizuru had never seen him go toe-to-toe with anyone, she'd only ever seen him stand at the corner he was at now passing out flyers for his restaurant.

"Hey, Simon!" Izaya held up a hand as he stood before the giant.

"Come in! Come in! Sushi is 100% fish today!" Simon all but pushed the two inside.

Chizuru suppressed the shudder that came along with thinking of what else they might have used for their sushi.

"Oh, you bring new friend today! Welcome to Russia Sushi new customer! You two have nigiri special, yes? Is very good for you." he insisted as he ushered them into a booth.

She had never been inside the restaurant before. The overall style of the interior definitely lived up to the "Russia" part of the name. However, the booth they were led to had a tatami mat and a low table encompassed by cushions. She soaked in her surroundings, cataloging the setting in her mind almost involuntarily, before sitting on one of the cushions.

"So, do you wanna tell me what the hell you did to that guy?" she began, the question had been burning at her the whole way over to the restaurant. Izaya- for once- had been quiet on their way over.

His cocky smirk made an appearance, "You mean Shizu-chan?"

She raised an eyebrow at the cutesy nickname.

He shrugged, "You could say...we have a history."

She groaned at his vague answer, he had the tight-lipped act down pat. Despite all of his nonstop talking he never seemed to say anything important.

"Don't be so upset, Chi-chan~! You were so excited before~" he grinned, catlike, a knowing look in his eye.

She narrowed her eyes at him, two milliseconds away from a snappy comeback when Simon showed up with a ridiculous amount of sushi on the two platters he was balancing on his arms, and a bottle of...

"Sake?" she eyed the bottle suspiciously.

"Is very good sushi today! Enjoy!" the giant encouraged as he left.

She was still glaring at the bottle.

"Ne~ Chi-chan~" Izaya spoke up. "What did that bottle do to deserve that glare?"

Her eyes snapped back to him, before she smiled prettily, "I'm not fool enough to let my guard down that easily."

"I'm not fool enough to attempt what you're hinting at either." he poured himself a cup of the lukewarm drink.

She was still skeptical, people like him were liable to either lie outright or tell half-truths.

She poured herself a cup, resolving not to drink it.

"This business deal I mentioned..." Izaya began, taking a sip at his drink. "Well, it might be obvious now."

Chizuru smirked, "You want me to play one of your sources?" she said nonchalantly, dipping her nigiri in soy sauce.

He clapped, "You got it right~!" he was watching her with interest, thinking, _"Play? Fitting choice of words."_

"Well, it was more than a bit obvious. Considering how your risk of premature death increases exponentially upon setting foot in Ikebukuro." she popped the nigiri into her mouth. Continuing only after she'd swallowed, "Certainly you must have sources aplenty already."

He lifted a shoulder, tacitly affirming that guess, "My sources in this neighborhood are not only limited but they're highly unrefined. A better option has appeared, it would be poor business sense to not try and make use of it."

_"A better option. An asset."_ she thought. _"Those terms have no place trying to define me."_

"I refuse." she said bluntly.

He didn't seem as downtrodden as she might have thought, in fact, he was still smiling, "Oh, may I ask why?"

"I haven't done any business in a long while." she tilted her head. "Though I'm sure you know that."

"Six months." he stated simply. "I was wondering why that might be?"

She shrugged, intent on being tight-lipped as well.

"Hm? Well, if you're not interested, I guess I could always make your connection to Kazuo well known."

She frowned, eyes narrowing into what was becoming a commonplace glare, "You're despicable."

He grinned, "What a thing to say. We'll be working together soon, won't we?"

She grit her teeth, "I suppose so."

He was positively beaming, "Alright~!"

She was quiet, before she downed her cup of sake in record time, "Forget it." she grumbled.


	3. Home to Roost

Kazuo couldn't help but be attracted to the nightlife, like moths to flame flocks of people crowded the city at night. Bars and nightclubs opened their doors to all, and everywhere everyone was more alive than ever. Kazuo loved the flashing lights, the thrumming music, the beautiful women, the handsome men.

And, of course, all those wonderful seedy people she had to deal with loved the nightlife too.

She spotted her target with a group of his friends in the corner of the bar. He seemed unassuming enough, tall and lanky with brown hair that fell in his face, if it weren't for the bulky guys surrounding him and the fact that both of his ears had at least six piercings each she would have overlooked him.

She settled on a stool and ordered the fruitiest drink she could think of. A group of girls came in and sat to her side, she made casual conversation, glad for their arrival. Being alone was suspicious and suspicion was the last thing she needed these days.

After nearly an hour of sitting and waiting, the man stood and made his way to the bathroom. She polished off her drink and followed.

She met him in the hall as he made to return to his friends, "Hey, big boy." she flashed him a smile.

His cheeks were already pink from overindulging and he wobbled a bit when he walked, "Hey yourself." he smiled back, looking her over without trying to hide it.

She stepped closer, pulling her hair to one side and subtly resting a hand against her exposed collarbone, bringing his attention to her cleavage, _"Men are so easy to manipulate."_ she thought.

"I saw you from across the bar, I couldn't help but think you're totally my type." she was still smiling, her lips shining red.

"Yeah?" his eyes widened a bit, "I mean, yeah, you know, I get that alot." he shrugged.

"I bet you do, cutie." she reached a hand up to run her finger down his jawline. "You wanna join me in the bathroom?" she winked.

He gulped, "H-hell yeah."

She pulled him back into the bathroom, leading him into one of the stalls, and pushing him back to sit on the toilet, he fumbled with his belt buckle, "Y-you know I don't actually do this sort of thing often..." he stumbled over his words.

"That's okay, Ukiyo-kun, I promise to be gentle." she smirked.

The color drained from his face, "H-how did you know my name?"

"Ukiyo Kenji, twenty-six, former leader of the "Lucky Fourteens" gang that used to roll in 'bukuro." she pinned him down when he tried to sit up.

"Wh-what do you want with me?!" he shook, "Don't tell me you're here for some kinda revenge?! I put all that shit behind me two years ago, I swear!"

She pressed a finger to his lips, "Don't worry, I'm just looking for information, okay? I'd heard a rumor that when you needed to take down a rival, you went to a certain informant." she sat in his lap, placing an arm around his shoulders. "And I was wondering if you could give me some of that man's information? If you still have it, of course." she stroked his chin with a finger, murmuring all of this in his ear.

He told her everything he knew.

When she had all she needed she stood, adjusting her dress, "Thank you, Ukiyo-kun. It always makes my day when people cooperate." she went to exit the stall but he caught her wrist.

He averted his gaze from her face, staring at the graffiti on the stall walls instead, "Hey, I don't know your reason, but you should stay away from that Orihara guy."

She cocked her head, letting her hair spill over her shoulder, "Mm? Why's that?"

"He's seriously bad news, yeah?" Kenji said, his eyes flickering back up to hers. "He uses everyone he meets and you don't even see it coming."

"I'll keep that in mind." she nodded with a sweet smile on her face. "You know, Ukiyo-kun, you really are cute." she leaned down and pressed a kiss to his lips to his surprise. She drew back, leaving him stunned. "See you around, Ukiyo-kun." she waved, the clicking of her heels the only sound in the bathroom before even that was gone and she disappeared into the night.

 

* * *

 

"I thought you'd said you weren't going to drink, Chi-chan~?" Izaya said with a smirk as he helped her out of the taxi in front of her apartment building.

"I thought you'd be less of a headache if I was buzzed." she nearly stumbled over the curb, he caught her by the elbow. She glanced up at him, "I was wrong, of course, but nobody's perfect."

He chuckled, "I'm starting to think the only time you're ever polite is when you're high on adrenaline."

She shot him a dirty look as he followed her to the elevator, "I'm plenty polite to people I like."

He placed a hand over his heart, "You don't have to like me. I'll still love you all the same."

"How much of that sake did you have?" she narrowed her eyes at him.

He snickered, "No, no, it's nothing like that. I love all my humans equally."

"Your humans? Of course you'd have a god complex..." she mumbled.

"What was that?"

"Why are you still here?" she griped, unlocking her door.

"What kind of man would I be if I didn't make sure you were safe at home in your state?"

"I'm not even drunk, I think I can take care of myself."

He shrugged, "I'm only concerned, Chi-chan~! What if someone broke into your apartment while you were gone~?"

She glared at him, kicking off her shoes sluggishly, "The one who keeps breaking into my apartment is you."

"I'd meet you around town if you weren't such a shut in." he admitted as she sat on her couch.

She huffed, "Alright, well, I'm here, I'm safe, you can go."

"I guess I could." he strode into her kitchen, pouring water into a glass. He was expecting some snappy remark about how he still hadn't left but when one didn't come he was pleased to find her passed out on the couch. "That took longer than I thought it would." he set the water down on her coffee table.

He smirked, surprised yet again at how easy it was to drug someone's drink when they simply weren't paying attention. All he had had to do was reach over the table, take something from her plate. She had been far too preoccupied with glaring at him to notice the capsule tumbling out of his sleeve and into her drink.

He began wandering her apartment, in truth it was a very bland sort of place. There were no pictures on the walls, no posters or paintings. The only things that hinted at the inhabitant's personality at all were the crammed bookcases in her living room. Aside from that the place may as well have been blank space. "You're not really giving me a lot to work with, Chi-chan." he sighed. He fiddled with the surveillance equipment he'd brought, settling on a vent toward the ceiling. It wasn't exactly an ideal viewpoint but there was little else in the way of hiding places.

His gaze slid over to the window in her bedroom, she'd left the blinds open. There was just the slightest movement on the roof of the adjacent building. Some indistinct figure moved away from his line of sight.

His crooked smile appeared, "No, no, don't let me scare you off." he turned away from the window, looking back to the sleeping girl in the living room. "I just want to know...why her?" 

There was no doubt that she was attractive. She was easily one of the most beautiful women he'd ever seen. It was no surprise that she had such a devoted admirer. But why had he gone after the daughter of an executive of the underworld without making any sort of move toward Chizuru? What kept him at bay? And how could Izaya change that?

He shrugged to himself, getting back to business.

 

* * *

 

Chizuru was a virtual nobody when he went trolling through her past. Izaya knew that she grew up in a small town a few hours south of Tokyo, she participated in gymnastics until she was fifteen, he knew which schools she went to, he knew that she'd moved to Ikebukuro just after her high school graduation, and she hadn't attended her coming-of-age ceremony. But these facts were nothing when compared to what he could dig up on someone else.

Her father, for example, was a massive enigma. Aside from the fact his name was Kuno Toshiro and that she hadn't talked to him in five years, he knew nothing about him.

He knew a bit more about her mother, but all of that was lackluster.

It was entertaining to speculate on why her father was such a blank slate in terms of data.

Yakuza? No, no, even if he was on the run from Yakuza it would be easy to get his information. Perhaps he was part of some underground society? Izaya smiled, no that was too fanciful.

"Ah here's something." he clicked on a link to an article from her hometown's newspaper. He was skimming over the column, it was about a gymnastics competition. There was even a picture of the winners.

"How slow was the news in her town?" he mused, eyebrows narrowing at how boring the newfound tidbit was.

Chizuru was in the picture along with another girl from her team, she must have been ten at the time. Something caught his attention, he zoomed in on the photograph. The girl beside Chizuru was a few years older, but they looked similar. The caption read: "Sisters Kuno Suzuki and Chizuru placed first in their respective age groups."

The corner of his mouth twitched, "Sisters?"

Nothing in anything he'd found mentioned a sister.

This was an even bigger mystery than her father. This was even better. Never had he met anyone that had this many secrets behind them. He was going to enjoy figuring it all out.

Just who the hell was Kuno Suzuki?

 

* * *

 

Chizuru had been putting away the groceries when she heard it. It wasn't so much a scream as it was a shout of surprise, almost a yelp. Whatever it was it was enough to get her attention, she headed down the hall to where Suzuki stood in the doorway to her parent's room.

"Suzuki, what's wrong?" Chizuru made her way over to her sister but before she could see whatever it was that the older girl was staring at Suzuki whipped around and pushed Chizuru away.

"Suzuki?" Chizuru questioned again, struggling to remain on her feet, despite her sister's shoving she managed to look over her shoulder into her parent's room. Just before her eyes were covered by Suzuki's hands she saw it.

Her mother's body in the closet, slumped at the end of a rope.

"Don't look, Chizuru." Suzuki pleaded with her. "Don't look, okay?" she wrapped her sister up in her arms, pressing her face against her chest, shielding her.

Chizuru was struck dumb, pressed against the wall. Her body was stiff and one thing was running through her mind, one perfect image ingrained forever in her memory.

The smile on her mother's dead face.

 

* * *

 

Chizuru woke up on her couch feeling groggy, she panicked, trying to sit up but finding her body too heavy and numb to do so effectively. She listened for the sound of someone else but heard nothing.

Eventually she was able to pull herself up and glance around the room, no one.

Her heart stuttered back into a more calm rhythm, _"You weren't drugged, you idiot. You were just sleeping heavily."_ she chastised herself, lightly smacking herself on the cheek.

As she slowly began to gain more control of her sluggish body she noticed a note on her coffee table.

"For your hangover." it read, beside a drawing of an arrow. A bottle of aspirin and a glass of water sat beside the note. "P.S. Chi-chan is so cute when she's passed out!" the postscript was surrounded by a heart.

Chizuru grimaced, _"What a creep."_ she ripped Izaya's note in half, then into fine shreds for good measure. _"That's right, I had sake. That's why I slept so heavily. Just too much alcohol."_ she rationalized. " _Still...I can't remember a time when I drank so much I passed out."_

As she began to recall all of what had happened yesterday she remembered the deal she'd reluctantly made with the informant. A "source", she'd agreed to become a source of his in exchange for him keeping quiet about Kazuo. Though, she'd like very much to know exactly how much he knew in regards to that affair. She sighed, it had been a long time since she had done any real gathering of information. She was a bit unwilling to begin again...

_"But what choice do I have?"_ she withdrew her phone from her purse, staring a the black screen for some time before illuminating it. _"There are a great many people that wouldn't think twice to use me to get to that monster..."_

She didn't even have to think about the number she was typing in, it was practically muscle memory at this point.

"Standby." she sent via text. Despite how long it had been since she'd sent that codeword last, she knew the recipient would obey without question.

Happily, even.

 

* * *

 

-Kanra has entered the chatroom-

Taro Tanaka: Ah, hello.

Setton: Good evening.

Kanra: Hi, everyone~!

Kanra: I was wondering if you'd heard about this new rumor?

Kanra: About Tokyo's recent serial killings?

Taro Tanaka: What? That's a scary topic to bring up!

Kanra: It is. I guess it's a good thing you don't live in Tokyo, Tanaka!

Setton: I live in Tokyo and I haven't heard anything about it.

Kanra: I saw a story about it on the news this morning!

Kanra: Apparently all the victims are women with similar features...

Kanra: Setton, if you're a girl with brown hair and light-colored eyes you should be careful!

Setton: I think I'm safe then.

Kanra: That's good news~!

Taro Tanaka: Those poor women... I hope their killer is brought to justice soon.

Setton: Me too, some people are really messed up, aren't they?

Kanra: Ah, Senbazuru, if you're reading this chat log, stay safe!

Taro Tanaka: Does your friend have those features?

Kanra: She does, that's why I'm so worried about her!

Setton: Maybe you should email her and make sure she doesn't go out alone?

Kanra: Good idea, Setton~! I'll be going then~! Bye byee~!

Taro Tanaka: Bye!

Setton: Bye!

-Kanra has left the chatroom-

Izaya closed out of the window, he wondered if Chizuru would read the log later. It was unlikely, she never got on unless he prompted her to.

He sipped at his tea, eyes sliding over to his other monitor. The video feed revealed Chizuru seated on her couch, hunched over a netbook computer.

He frowned, "Still at home, huh? You never do anything exciting, Chi-chan!"

Then again he hadn't been out all day, either. He also hadn't had dinner, yet.

He stood grinning, typing a text into his phone, "It's starting to get cold out so I think we should have nikujaga tonight!"

He saw her reached for her phone as it lit up, she scowled at the thing and began jabbing at the keys.

"You can have as much nikujaga as you want...somewhere else." came her reply.

 

* * *

 

Chizuru didn't exactly have a destination in mind. She was just walking. Over the past few months she'd spent most of her time in her apartment, only venturing out for groceries or other such necessities.

Ikebukuro was an ever changing place. And it had most definitely shifted in her absence.

_"All these punks are wearing yellow..."_ she glanced at the crowds that seemed to linger at the street corners here and there. They saturated the streets and gathered in alleyways. _"A color gang?"_ she thought as she crossed the street.

She got to wondering, curiosity slowly waking in her mind.

_"They're young, high school, middle school, even. Predominately male. Nothing special in terms of build or looks. Run of the mill thugs. Probably dealing mostly in vandalism and petty thievery. Good at giving someone a hassle but no real danger. Small fish in other words."_ Still, she was glad she kept pepper spray in her bag.

As she walked she began to notice another color tied around people's wrists or foreheads.

_"Blue, now?"_ her eyes moved from person to person. _"This one seems to take in older guys. A few of them even have weapons..."_ she thought with surprise as she spied a trio of them in a nearby alleyway that brandished pipes and an aluminum baseball bat. _"Maybe I should steer clear of this part of Ikebukuro for a while."_ but even as she found herself thinking this she felt a tug on her arm.

She was being dragged into an alley, her heart jumped into her throat, "Wah! Lemme go!" she tried to jerk her arm back but it was held tight.

Her attacker wore a blue bandana tied around his upper arm, "Hey, come on now, cutie, we just want to have some fun." he said with a snicker. Behind him stood two more guys, one in a blue hoodie and the other with a blue beanie pulled down low over his lanky hair- he had a baseball bat.

She fumbled for her bag but before she could pull out her pepper spray, the man holding her arm grabbed her wrist, "What you got there?" he yanked the mace from her hand. "Ooh, kitty's got claws."

The guy in the blue hoodie behind him took it from him and chucked the can toward the dumpster nearby, "You don't need this, baby, we're not bad guys." he said, smiling.

"Fuck off." she tore her wrist from the guy holding her.

He tightened his grip on her forearm, "That's not a very ladylike thing to say."

She hissed, hoping he would mistake the reaction for pain, but already her cheeks were coloring.

"Mm? What was that about "ladylike"?" came a sugary sweet voice from their right.

"Who the fuck is that?" one of the thugs asked.

"You know, guys that think women ought to be demure and well-mannered really get on my nerves." Chizuru could hear the click-clacking of heels on the pavement. "And guys that prey on meek women really turn me off."

The sound of the newcomer's voice made her feel like there was a block of ice in her stomach.

The speaker came into Chizuru's field of vision.

The man holding Chizuru smiled at the new arrival, "That's too bad, cuz I definitely wouldn't mind playing around with you, sweetie."

Kazuo smiled, "I guess you didn't hear me then." she produced a knife from somewhere behind her, "Guys like you really piss me off." she was on them in the blink of an eye, and before they could even react she had plunged the blade into one of their shoulders.

He stumbled back, blood soaking his hoodie, "Jesus!"

"Crazy bitch!" said the one in the beanie. He swung his bat and the thing connected with her head, her head whipped right.

Kazuo stepped back, bangs covering her eyes, blood ran down her neck. It dripped, dripped, dripped onto the cracked pavement beneath her.

The man holding Chizuru pulled her closer to him, turning her so her back was pressed against his chest, "That's right, who the fuck do you think you are?! We're the Blue Squares, baby!"

"You think I give a shit?" Kazuo retorted, her voice thick and honeyed.

She was smiling.

"The fuck...?" came the wavering voice of the leader.

She looked up at the man holding Chizuru, and her blood began to run in reverse, coursing backward up toward her left temple, the jagged slice beside her left eye and the bruising that covered the left side of her face began fading as quickly as they had appeared, "Blue Squares, you said? You think you're special?" she held out her arm and waggled her knife at the trio.

The leader loosened his grip on Chizuru and she squirmed away from him, hovering at the edge of the alley, heart pumping and blood pounding. She had to get out of here, away from that monster, but she was glued to the spot.

The trio backed away from Kazuo, "You're not gonna follow through with your tough guy act now?"

"Her face. I busted her fucking face..." the beanie guy mumbled, before turning and running.

The other guys followed suit, but Kazuo snagged the collar of the leader.

He screeched, "Just let me go! I'm sorry, okay?! Fuck!"

Kazuo pushed him against the dumpster. "You know what I really hate more than anything else? Guys that roll in packs, acting like they're tough shit. They're like rats but because there's a lot of them they think they're fucking invincible." she laughed, it came out breathy and light. "I must admit though, they're my favorite kind of person to kill, you know? They never see it coming."

He whimpered, clamping his eyes shut.

"So, tell me, do you think you're invincible, sweetie?" she murmured against his ear, grin splitting her face. She brought her knife up to trace the line of his jaw.

"No!" he squealed, shrinking away from her face.

"Then you'd better fuck off before I change my mind." she released him, and he scrabbled against the accumulated trash beside the dumpster taking off down the alley.

Chizuru was still stuck at the very edge of the shadowed path, mouth pressed into a thin line.

Kazuo looked over her shoulder at her, lazy grin still adorning her face, "Hey, Chizuru, did you miss me?"

Chizuru took a few stuttering steps backward, until the dim streetlights could envelope her in their glow. She turned and took off down the sidewalk thundering past everyone in her way not even stopping to mind those dressed in blue or yellow.

 

* * *

 

She ran all the way back to her apartment, her jittery hands only getting the key in the lock after several tries. She slammed the door behind her and leaned against it to take several calming breaths. Still she felt a few hot tears trail over her cheeks. The adrenaline that whirled through her did little to numb the sharp pain in her chest.

"Something the matter?"

Chizuru jumped at the voice, there perched on her couch with a cat-like grin was Izaya, "What the fuck are you doing in my house?" her voice was unsteady, bitterness dampened by how weak she'd sounded.

His grin only seemed to sharpened at her tone, "I thought I said I'd come over for nikujaga?"

"I thought I'd said you could go somewhere else for that?" she spat, reigning in her control, turning to wipe the tears from her face and hang her coat.

"It's no fun eating alone." Izaya cocked his head to one side. "Besides, there were a few things I wanted to talk to you about, Chi-chan." and he held up a printout. The picture was greyscale, an amateur looking photograph that she recognized immediately. Herself from years ago before everything skewed and toppled around her feet, standing next to someone she knew better than the back of her own hand. Izaya had somehow gotten his hands on a picture of her sister, Kuno Suzuki.

She was about three seconds from screaming, she wanted nothing more at that moment then to punch him square in the mouth. It really was his fault all of this was happening. Without his slinking into her life she would never have to see Kazuo again. He ruined that quiet little life she was wallowing in, and yet he sat there on her couch while she was in crisis mode, smiling. Smugly smiling, like he knew everyone of her squirreled away secrets. Drinking in her anger and her fear and her uncertainty and her self-hatred.

Chizuru's greatest wish was to never be known, truly known by anyone. To go through life as one true undecipherable constant. The shadow that crept inside your head, learning all there was to know about you, only to disappear when opened your eyes. The one that held all the strings but bore no strings herself. The ultimate chessmaster. But seeing him there, perched atop her sofa, one leg resting over the other, that smug, smug smile on his face. She knew that that wish would never be granted.

No matter how many paper cranes were folded, God would not see to her wish. Because God himself was the ultimate chessmaster and he would not allow himself to be replaced.

"Damn you, Orihara Izaya." she said aloud, watching his grin widen.

No, she had had strings all along, and he would be the one to twist them, and she would be pulled apart and laid bare.


End file.
